This page was produced by The National in collaboration or partnership with Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi
Young Emiratis are stepping into global arenas with fresh ideas and transformative ambition as global environmental leaders meet in Abu Dhabi for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress.
Among them is Majed Abdullah Bin Saad, a recognised changemaker and social innovator whose journey into conservation is reshaping how the UAE blends environmental stewardship with social impact.
Majed, told The National that his volunteering journey started from an early age, “I have been lucky to be engaging with my family and my friends and through my schools in various opportunities, these various activations and engagement showed me the importance and the powerful impact of those volunteering efforts in the development of the community.”
Emirati impact
Majed is the founder of the ATHR Project, a home-grown initiative whose name comes from the Arabic word for “impact" (أثـــر).
“You cannot build a sustainable future for people without protecting the foundation of that future, [which is] nature,” Majed said. “That realisation pushed us to merge our approach to social good with urgent climate and biodiversity action.”
The ATHR Project connects government bodies and private organisations, as well as individuals in a shared journey using technology, grass roots engagement, and cross sector partnerships to turn intent into measurable outcomes.
ATHR, a “social project” works like an ecosystem of interconnected projects that support individuals and youth to amplify their social and environmental impact.
For example, the ATHR programme, crafts immersive social experiences, the ATHR Stations (MAHATAT), provides mobile, interactive set-ups to enhance community outreach, and the ATHR Platform is a digital space designed to empower individuals.
To date, the project has operated across all seven emirates, collaborating with more than 40 major entities and mobilising a growing network of young individuals looking to make a difference.
The impact has not gone unnoticed. Majed has received numerous accolades, including the Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Environmental Medal, the “Best Supporter of Volunteer Work Award” from the Sharjah Award for Voluntary Work and, most recently, the “Plan to Action” Seal from the UAE Year of Sustainability team, a marker of strategic alignment with the nation’s broader environmental goals.
This year, Majed’s efforts were selected as one of the IUCN UAE Young Changemakers for the World Conservation Congress, he is set to represent the country at one of the world’s most significant gatherings on conservation, hosted for the first time in the UAE.
“The UAE is the ideal platform for this congress,” he said. “It acts as a global bridge between East and West, bringing together diverse perspectives to address our planet’s shared challenges.”
The congress is being held in Abu Dhabi until October 15. The event includes 10,000 delegates from more than 140 countries, including government officials, scientists, campaigners and indigenous leaders.
The congress was established in 1948 and has been held across the world since then, from Barcelona and Buenos Aires to Nairobi and New Delhi.
This year is the first time it has been hosted in the Gulf. It was staged in the Middle East, in Jordan, in 2000.
For Majed, the IUCN Congress in Abu Dhabi is an opportunity to showcase how youth led, locally rooted solutions can inform the global climate and biodiversity agenda.
“Being selected for the congress is a tremendous honour,” he said. “It confirms that UAE youth are not just beneficiaries of global progress, we’re shaping it. We’re architects of a nature-positive future.”
Majed sees conservation through a broader, intergenerational lens. To him, safeguarding biodiversity is not only about environmental protection, it’s about equity. “It means preserving the essential natural capital upon which our communities and economies depend,” he said. “It’s a commitment to ensure future generations inherit a healthy, thriving environment.”
While the UAE's government has invested heavily in national climate initiatives, from clean energy to mangrove reforestation, there’s a growing movement of youth-led activity embodied in projects like ATHR that makes the country’s environmental transformation feel deeply personal.
International impact
At the IUCN Congress Majed is focused on learning and global partnerships. “I’m particularly interested in new conservation technologies and community engagement models. The congress offers a chance to absorb best practices from around the world and bring them back to enrich our ecosystem," he said.
He also hopes to increase ATHR’s impact beyond the UAE. “This platform gives us a springboard to expand regionally and potentially globally. If we can show that our model works here, it could work elsewhere too."
Majed’s story is an example of a broader shift in the region where youth no longer see themselves on the sidelines of the climate conversation. Whether through tech, advocacy, or community building, they are taking ownership of the planet’s future.
As he prepares to step on to the world stage, Majed carries with him not just the aspirations of a single project, but the ethos of an entire generation of changemakers: committed, creative, and ready to lead.
“One of the biggest lessons that I learnt throughout my journey of my project was to always try, always try your best,” Majed said. “Never underestimate your ideas and efforts. Many of my ideas started as small efforts, just engaging my community to now leading and creating a unique initiative with leading entities across the country.”
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Super heroes
Iron Man
Reduced risk of dementia
Alcohol consumption could be an issue
Hulk
Cardiac disease, stroke and dementia from high heart rate
Spider-Man
Agility reduces risk of falls
Increased risk of obesity and mental health issues
Black Panther
Vegetarian diet reduces obesity
Unknown risks of potion drinking
Black Widow
Childhood traumas increase risk of mental illnesses
Thor
He's a god
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
Squads
Sri Lanka Tharanga (c), Mathews, Dickwella (wk), Gunathilaka, Mendis, Kapugedera, Siriwardana, Pushpakumara, Dananjaya, Sandakan, Perera, Hasaranga, Malinga, Chameera, Fernando.
India Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Rahane, Jadhav, Dhoni (wk), Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Thakur.
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
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